Ailing Hunter unable to stop Ding

By John Dee

12:01AM GMT 13 Dec 2005

Chinese teenager Ding Junhui became the first player through to the quarter-finals of the Travis Perkins UK Championship when he completed a 9-2 victory over Paul Hunter, the world No 5, at York's Barbican Centre yesterday.

Later, Basildon professional Stuart Bingham reached the last eight of a ranking event for the third time, following a 9-2 victory over Mark Davis.

China Open champion Junhui, 18, faces Neil Robertson or world champion Shaun Murphy for a place in the semi-finals, while Bingham is up against Mark King or Joe Perry.

After taking a 7-1 lead the previous day, Junhui knocked in breaks of 40 and 66 as he added the two frames needed to seal a facile victory.

"I'm very happy to get through as I haven't been playing well in practice," said Junhui, whose only previous appearance in the quarter-finals of a ranking event was at last season's China Open.

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Hunter's ongoing battle with cancer has taken its toll. He has undergone two cycles of chemo-therapy in recent weeks and has lost feeling in his hands and feet and has lost all his hair.

The three-times Masters champion from Leeds admitted: "You've got to have a clear mind for this game - and I just haven't got that at the moment. It's frustrating when you know you can play much better, but it's been tough for me.

"I get tired very easily, but the doctors have told me to lead my life as normally as possible, and for me, that involves playing snooker. They say it could take six months to a year for me to be back to normal, and that's only if I don't need further treatment.

"I felt more comfortable today than I did yesterday, when I lost seven frames out of eight, so I was just waiting to lose. I felt I had someone else's arms out there.

"I'm just glad to have got a win under my belt," he added.

Hunter's wife, Lindsey, is due to give birth on Dec 27, and the Yorkshire potter said: "Hopefully my new son or daughter will inspire me. I can't wait until my new baby comes."

Five times UK champion Stephen Hendry holds a 6-2 lead over Mark Williams going into the last nine frames of their third-round match. The Scot compiled a break of 136 in the last frame of the day.